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Re: Dropped to 25th percentile :(

Even if you did damage your supply with the feeding-on-only-one-breast advice, it will come back up once you start feeding more frequently and on both breasts. Supply is very flexible and will adjust to demand. Just nurse, nurse, nurse as often as baby wants or will take it. I don't think you need to pump beyond what you're already doing. Nursing is better than pumping for increasing supply, so if baby is willing to nurse more, do it. Especially coming up to your weigh-in--just focus on nursing as much as humanly possible for the next few days and I bet you'll have good results

First-time mama to Joshua, 10/29/11. 38 months ; now trying to wean. for 14 months; now finished with pump weaning!

Re: Dropped to 25th percentile :(

I'm so upset. Micah was weighed again after dropping percentiles last week.. and he's only gained 2oz in 7 days. He's now on the 9th percentile, after starting out on the 50th. :'(

They said the bare minimum weight gain should be half an oz per day so he's really struggling. The thing is, he ticks every other box! He saw 2 HVs today and they both said he's the poster boy for breastfeeding as far as his latch is concerned, he feeds well and regularly for decent amounts of time, he wees and poos plenty and his poos are the right colour and consistency. He's happy and alert, he doesn't look skinny and he sleeps well but wakes for feeds often enough.

The HVs called him 'an enigma'!! One wondered if it was my supply but when I told her I can pump 3/4oz milk each morning they scrapped that theory. They're at a loss.

They went and checked with a GP who said to try Gaviscon for a few days as he can be quite sicky, and see if that helps him keep more food down. But basically they said they doubted that was it as if he wasn't getting enough then he wouldn't be ticking all the other boxes...

I am SO confused and worried. One of the HVs said looking at his graph she expected to see a skinny, drowsy. poorly looking baby, and she can't equate the boy with the graph. :/ They even weighed him on another set of scales but it was even worse so they ignored it.

I don't know what to do. The GP said as long as he seems fine not to weigh him till his 8 week check (in 2 weeks) and they'll review it again then. The HV said he may suggest a formula 'top-up' after a feed to boost his calories.

My fiancé thinks we should just start topping him up now, and I'm wondering the same, but I wouldn't know where to start with formula without speaking to a HV, I don't know how much, which brand etc. So I guess we'll try the Gaviscon over the weekend and then see where we go from there.

Re: Dropped to 25th percentile :(

Oh mama, you aren't a failure. Wasn't it only two days ago you stopped nursing off one breast at a time? It's going to take more than a couple days for you to build him back up where he needs to be. In the meantime just keep nursing nursing nursing. You've got a happy, healthy baby on your hands. You are not a failure.

And while I'm not trying to diminish the fact that he's not gaining enough, let me just say that both my kids dropped huge percentiles between birth weight and two(ish) months. My daughter was born at (I think) 50%ile and dropped to 5th and my son was born at 80%ile and dropped to 25th.

You are doing great just by trying to fix this and make sure everything is okay. Your baby is fine. Try to relax and just keep nursing as much as you can. I bet your baby will rebound in no time.

“We are not put on earth for ourselves, but are placed here for each other. If you are there always for others, then in time of need, someone will be there for you.”
--Anonymous

Re: Dropped to 25th percentile :(

Originally Posted by @llli*still.here

Oh mama, you aren't a failure. Wasn't it only two days ago you stopped nursing off one breast at a time? It's going to take more than a couple days for you to build him back up where he needs to be. In the meantime just keep nursing nursing nursing. You've got a happy, healthy baby on your hands. You are not a failure.

This article may make you feel better about your baby crossing percentiles: Evaluation of Short and Tall Stature in Children, Nwosu, B. And Lee, M. AFP Vol. 78, No. 5, 2008http://www.aafp.org/afp/2008/0901/p597.html

This is the part I found really interesting: "A newborn's size is determined by the intra-uterine environment, which is influenced by maternal size, nutrition, general health, and social habits (e.g., smoking status). The average weight of a newborn is 7 lb, 3 oz (3.25 kg), and the average length is 50 cm (19.7 in).2 After birth, the growth rate becomes more dependent on the infant's genetic background.3

An important phenomenon, often called catch-up or catch-down growth, occurs in the first 18 months of life. In two thirds of children, the growth rate percentile shifts linearly until the child reaches his or her genetically determined growth channel or height percentile.3* Some children move up on the growth chart because they have tall parents, whereas others move down on the growth chart because they have short parents. By 18 to 24 months of age, most children's lengths have shifted to their genetically determined percentiles. Thereafter, growth typically proceeds along the same percentile until the onset of puberty".

If you decide to supplement, you don't need to use formula. Breastmilk actually has just as many, or according to some sources slightly more, calories per oz as formula. And you're able to pump- well, was that three quarters of an oz, or 3 to 4 oz after feeding? I couldn't quite decide due to the way you expressed it- so you could supplement with your own milk. One thing you might even try, if you are really concerned, is making "double cream" milk: you pump a bottle and let it sit in the fridge until the cream separates out and floats to the top. Then you pour the cream into another bottle, feed that high-fat bottle to the baby, and save the "skim" milk in the freezer for a rainy day. But I don't know that I would take that avenue yet. Feed on both breasts for a while and see if anything changes.

You're doing a great job and we totally understand how difficult this is and how much self-doubt and self-blame goes along with this sort of issue. But don't let it eat at you!

Re: Dropped to 25th percentile :(

Don't top off. Introducing formula now is just going to go counter to everything you are trying to do, which is to boost your supply by nursing as much as possible. You'll get there. I think the fact that your GP wants to wait two weeks until the next weigh-in is her way of saying that she thinks you'll get there too. In fact, I would probably avoid weighing baby till then. Give yourself the time to let your supply increase without getting stressed about the number on the scale. You, HVs, GP are all saying baby looks great. You're looking at baby, you're looking at his wets and dirties, you're looking at how he's feeding. Just keep doing that and keep nursing!